Miles:19.15 Steps: 41,926

Todays Selfie

Today was one of the hardest days so far but it was so beautiful it was worth it. It was almost 2000 feet incline and 2600 feet decline. The views were amazing and there were so many amazing distractions that it made the day such a happy memory despite the rocky ground and fall that I had going downhill (I’m fine…just a few bruises luckily!). I started in the dark because it was a long walk and I didn’t want to be walking in the hot afternoon.

Sunrise over Fromista

Cruz de Ferro

Cruz de Ferro is a wooden post that has an iron cross on top that has a lot of sentimentalism for Pilgrims on the Camino. At the bottom, there is a mound of rocks and other items that has been forming over the years due to the tradition of pilgrims bringing stones here from their homes. Stones are left to symbolize you leaving all your burdens behind. I brought 3 stones with me. 2 from home and one from the beginning of the Camino and associated 3 different worries to them. I have left them at the cross and set them to the universe to take care of. It was a very emotional morning for all the pilgrims actually. You could see a lot of people left a lot of fears, worries and sadness on that mound.

After the cross, we had a crazy decent that was rocky and steep. It helped to distract people from their thoughts becuase they really had to focus on their steps.

Here are some pictures from the day.

The path was horrible today. It was either very rocky or uneven panels of rocks. I couldn’t have imagined what it would have been like in the rain.

We walked thru several small villages. Most were deserted.
Lily and her Dad reminded me of Rocket and Howard.
In the middle of nowhere this angel was standing and selling cherries. It was such a nice reprieve from the long and arduous walk.
There were so many butterflies who visited me while walking. It really kept me motivated.
I have never been so happy to get to my destination!
View from the bridge and actually where I spent most of the afternoon sipping wine, eating lunch, watching pilgrims walk in (over the bridge) and enjoying the rest.
Bridge leading into town. (Mentioned above).
Sen0r Oso is a great albergue. Jose was an amazing host and the hostel was very comfortable and clean.
Nikki graciously gave me the bottom bunk. Our hostel was great and the owner was phenomenal.
This is where I will be walking to tomorrow morning!

After filling ourselves with good food and good wine, we headed home before it started to rain. We hung out in the common room for a bit and then called it a night. I had a bad cough and had to leave the room a couple of times so I wouldn’t keep everyone awake. It also go a bit hot because Nikki and I were sharing with 2 men who radiated so much heat and no one opened the windows before we went to sleep.